No. 25 - Its Gran Canaria Magazine

32
REPORT I REPORTAJE EDICIÓN 25
The common history of France and Gran Canaria
By Míchel Jorge Millares
France has had a profound scientific interest in the
Canary Islands since the 17th century. Louis Feuillée,
Berteloth and Verneau are some of illustrious
researchers who were inspired by our geology,
flora, fauna, history and anthropology. They even
placed the first meridian in Orchilla (El Hierro), until
the British Empire decided that the line had to pass
through their own country, through Greenwich
250 years later. But it was not just the French who
would come to our islands, as an illustrious Canary
Islander, José de Viera y Clavijo, witnessed the revolutionary
period first hand and met Voltaire and
other academics.
The relationship between France and the Canary
Islands gave rise to several Canary wordage of
French origin such as: malpaís, cardón, guata or
creyón, a reflection of the linguistic twinning between
the two communities. Even the conquest of
the archipelago was initially French-influenced, as
it was the Normans who first settled in our islands
under the command of Jean de Bethencourt and
Gadifer de La Salle, who created the first colonial
capital in Fuerteventura, Betancuria, named after
the conqueror.
The mystery surrounding the ancient inhabitants
of the islands was the central theme of studies carried
out by René Verneau, an anthropologist whose
life is marked by an unwavering passion for the Canary
Islands, focusing his studies on the Guanches.
Memories of Pedro González, the 'werewolf' of the
court, were still lingering in French society in the
16th century. González had a very strange appearance,
brought on by a disease that produced an
enormous amount of facial hair, which he passed
on to his descendants.
Other characters worth remembering include Juan
Bautista Ripoche, an outstanding businessman
and promoter of civil society, one of the driving
forces behind the Círculo Mercantil de Las Palmas,
the son of a French soldier who was deported to
the island after the War of Independence.
The figure of Camille Saint Säens should also not
be forgotten. The composer covered up his identity
on arrival and integrated himself into our society,
establishing a friendship with many islanders. This
was at the beginning of the 20th century, when the
wealthy sugar cane merchant Jacques Lebaudy
armed two ships and set out from Gran Canaria to
conquer the Sahara empire, triggering a mind-boggling
episode in world history and an international
conflict.
And, although he never set foot on the island, it is
remembered that Antoine de Saint-Exupéry did fly
over Gran Canaria, around the bay of Gando, to report
on its suitability for becoming an airport, one
of the most dynamic in the Atlantic region today.
But it is not only the French, such as Viera, who
played a relevant role in our islands who are remembered.
The role of a number of Canary Islanders in
the liberation of Paris from the Nazis may be better
remembered, such as the anarchist and republican
captain, Miguel Campos, who led La Nueve with a
dozen jeeps and a tank.
More recent is the period that French artist Guillery
spent on the island. He came in search of an artist
he was fascinated with, César Manrique, and in the
1960s he exhibited in the islands and collaborated
in different publications as an illustrator. The islands
also inspired Guillery to create his own style, which
he would take to the countries of northern Europe,
with the conviction that his paintings were a great
success because they reflected the light of the Canary
Islands, a light that early tourists to the island
longed for so much. His passion for the Canary Islands
led him to settle on the island of Manrique,
Lanzarote, where his daughter and granddaughter
still live.
In the 1960s, Jean Cocteau also visited the island
and brought the memory of the figure of the werewolf
back to the French through his film 'Beauty
and the Beast'.
Camille Saint-Saëns
Jean Cocteau
Jules Verne
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
It is not only people who bind our history together.
There are also institutions such as the Lycée
Français, an educational centre of which there are
only a few in Spain and which next year will celebrate
its 50th anniversary on the island, providing
a secular and egalitarian style and educational
project. This work is also promoted by the Alliance
Française, whose activity contributes to bringing
our cultures closer together. French culture is thus
deeply rooted in the European spirit of the Canary
Islander.
Camille Saint-Saëns en Gran Canaria